Trump compliments prosecution’s first witness in criminal trial: ‘very nice’
Former President Donald Trump lauded the first witness in his trial in Manhattan, former tabloid publisher David Pecker, as a “nice guy” earlier Thursday ahead of court.
“He’s been very nice. David’s been very nice. He’s a nice guy,” Trump told the media while meeting with construction crews in the city early Thursday morning.
Pecker is the prosecution team’s first witness in the NY v. Trump case, where the 45th president is facing 34 charges of falsifying business records.
Pecker is the former CEO of American Media Inc., the parent company of publications such as the National Enquirer, who has known Trump stretching back to the 1980s. The former media publisher took the stand earlier this week, where he testified regarding “catch and kill schemes” to allegedly bury negative information about Trump ahead of the 2016 election.
“Catch-and-kill” schemes are understood as tactics used by media and publishing companies to buy the rights of a person’s story with no intention of publishing it. The NY v. Trump case specifically revolves around a payment of $130,000 given to former pornographic actress Stormy Daniels by former Trump personal attorney in 2016 to allegedly silence her claims she had an extramarital affair with Trump in 2006.
Pecker testified Thursday that he first heard of Daniels’ claims of a sexual affair with Trump after the notorious “Access Hollywood” tape was unearthed ahead of the election in 2016. He said that Daniels was selling rights to her story for $120,000, which Pecker said the media company could not afford.
“I am not a bank,” Pecker said he told National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard of the tip and sale of Daniels’ story. Howard then told Pecker he would contact Cohen about the matter, Pecker said.
Prosecutors allege that after Cohen paid Daniels in exchange for silence on the alleged affair, Trump fraudulently logged reimbursements to the personal lawyer as legal expenses. Prosecutors in the case are trying to prove that Trump falsified business records in “furtherance of another crime.” The DA’s office said the other crime is the violation of a New York law against “conspiracy to promote or prevent election.”
Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this update.
Trump says court purposely keeping room ‘very cold’
Former President Trump filed another complaint about the “freezing courthouse” on Friday and speculated that the temperature was being kept low on purpose.
“They don’t seem to be able to get the temperature up,” Trump said. “It shouldn’t be that complicated. But we have a freezing courthouse and that’s fine, that’s just fine.”
Trump’s attorneys have asked Judge Juan Merchan if something can be done about the temperature, but the judge declined. Last week he apologetically explained that the old courthouse has two modes: chilly or sweltering, and that it’d be better to be cold than hot.
Trump attorney Todd Blanche asked the judge if it were possible to increase the temperature by “just one degree.”
“It is cold, there’s no question it is cold, but I’d rather be a little cold than sweaty, and really those are the choices,” the judge said, according to a pool report. “I agree with you it’s chilly, no question.”
Trump says he can’t be with wife Melania on her birthday due to ‘rigged’ trial
Former President Trump wished his wife Melania a “very happy birthday” on Friday morning and complained that he could not spend the day with her because of his “rigged” trial.
Trump spoke to reporters moments before he entered the courtroom for the continuation of his criminal trial on charges of falsifying business records.
“I want to start by wishing my wife Melania a very happy birthday. It’d be nice to be with her but I’m in a courthouse for a rigged trial,” Trump said.
The former president and presumptive Republican nominee for 2024 said yesterday’s proceedings went “very well” and that his trial “should be over.”
“I think we have a judge who will never allow the case to be over in a positive way, he’s highly conflicted,” Trump said, taking a shot at presiding Judge Juan Merchan.
He also commented on Thursday’s Supreme Court hearing on his claim of presidential immunity, calling his attorney’s arguments “brilliant.”
“I listened to it last night, I thought it was really great. I thought the judge’s questions were really great,” Trump said. “All presidents have to have immunity, it has nothing to do with me,” he asserted.
Trump told reporters he will return to Florida after the trial warps up today to be with his wife.
Former President Trump departs Trump Tower to return to court
Former President Trump has departed Trump Tower for the Manhattan courthouse where his criminal trial for allegedly falsifying business records will continue for its eighth day.
Court proceedings will begin at 9:30 a.m. ET. Trump did not make any statements as he left Trump Tower, but he has held several impromptu press conferences outside the courtroom this week and may speak to reporters again.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged Trump with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. Bragg alleges that Trump ex-attorney Michael Cohen orchestrated hush money payments to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal to prevent them from sharing their stories about alleged affairs with Trump. Bragg is trying to prove that Trump was aware of those payments, and allegedly falsified records of payments to Cohen as “legal expenses” rather than repayments for the hush money.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all counts and told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview on Thursday that he was simply paying Cohen legal fees because Cohen was his lawyer.
Bragg also alleged American Media Inc., which witness David Pecker was the CEO of, allegedly employed the “catch and kill” strategy to bury stories — specifically Karen McDougal’s. Bragg and prosecutors sought to convince the jury that Pecker’s work to do this was made with the blessing of Trump’s 2016 campaign.
Pecker, though, testified that he worked with Cohen in his capacity as Trump’s personal attorney.
Pecker’s cross-examination is expected to continue Friday morning.
Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman contributed to this update.
Prosecutors allege Trump violated gag order multiple times this week
Prosecutor Christopher Conroy argued Thursday that former President Donald Trump allegedly violated a gag order four additional times, for a total of 14 violations.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office has asked Judge Juan Merchan to hold Trump in contempt of court for allegedly violating an order which prohibits Trump from commenting on likely witnesses in his criminal trial. The judge has yet to rule on the request.
In documents filed Thursday, Conroy outlined four additional alleged violations that happened this week when Trump made statements to the press between his court appearances. The prosecutor pointed to comments Trump made to a local Pennsylvania news station about his former attorney Michael Cohen, who is expected to testify at trial later on.
“Well, Michael Cohen is a convicted liar and he’s got no credibility whatsoever. He was a lawyer and you rely on your lawyers. But Michael Cohen was a convicted liar. He was a lawyer for many people, not just me. And he got in trouble because of things outside of what he did for me, largely, it was essentially all because what he did in terms of campaign I don’t think there was anything wrong with that with the charges that they made. But what he did is he did some pretty bad things, I guess, with banking or whatever if that was a personal thing to him,” Trump said on Monday.
Conroy called this a “knowing and willful statement” that violated Merchan’s gag order. The prosecutor also noted statements Trump made about David Pecker, a former tabloid publisher who will resume cross examination today.
“He’s been very nice. I mean, he’s been — David’s been very nice. A nice guy,” Trump said on Thursday.
At trial, Conroy told the judge that Trump was sending a message to Pecker, instructing him to “be nice” else Trump would use his platform to “say things like I said about Cohen.”
Trump prosecutor quit top DOJ post for NY job in likely bid to ‘get’ former president, expert says
The prosecutor whose opening statement kicked off the historic trial of Former President Donald Trump left a lofty perch in the Biden administration Justice Department for his current comparatively modest New York City job – a career move that legal analysts describe as puzzling and one that’s prompted questions regarding motivation.
Even though Matthew Colangelo is only now sitting in a courtroom formally opposing the former president, his work has for years involved investigating Trump and his businesses, despite working for different prosecutorial offices at varying levels of government. Colangelo’s sudden switch from top DOJ official to a role with the DA’s office in the Big Apple has particularly raised eyebrows.
“It’s very odd. It’s usually the other way around. . . . And frankly, that sounds to me like somebody who thought, ‘Ah, here’s an opportunity to go and get Donald Trump,'” attorney and former member of the Federal Election Commission, Hans von Spakovsky, told Fox News Digital in a phone interview this month.
It’s rare to see successful, ambitious attorneys willingly climb several steps down the career ladder, experts note.
“It is a little unusual,” Heritage Foundation senior legal fellow Zack Smith said of Colangelo’s career moves. “Particularly, the position he had at the Justice Department was a fairly high ranking one . . . he spent some time in the New York Attorney General’s office, he also spent some time as a career staffer in the DOJ Civil Rights Division. He was in leadership in the Justice Department, and then immediately from that leadership position — an acting leadership position — went to the DA’s office.”
Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this update.
Pecker claims Trump said anytime Stormy mentions his name, ‘it’s a $1M penalty’
Former American Media Inc. (AMI) CEO David Pecker told the court that former President Trump had an agreement with Stormy Daniels and every time she said his name she would have to pay a $1 million penalty.
One of the exhibits presented in court was a Wall Street Journal article from Jan. 12, 2018, which revealed Michael Cohen paid Daniels to stay quiet. The evidence was presented, “not for the truth, but to show that it was printed on that date.”
Fast-forwarding to March 2018, Steinglass brought up an interview between Karen McDougal and Anderson Cooper, which Pecker remembered taking place around March 18, 20218.
The day after the interview, Pecker claimed, Trump called him.
“Did you see the interview last night with Anderson Cooper and Karen McDougal? I thought you had, and we had, an agreement that she can’t give any interviews or be on any television shows,” Pecker recalled Trump saying.
“Yes, we have an agreement, but I amended it to allow her to speak to the press,” Pecker said he told Trump.
Pecker testified that Trump got upset.
Pecker also talked about another call between Trump, Hope Hicks and Sarah Huckabee Sanders, where he mentioned he was going to extend Karen’s contract because they had not fulfilled some of the obligations.
Trump allegedly told him it was a bad idea but later told him, “It’s your business, do whatever you plan on doing.”
McDougal filed a lawsuit against AMI in March 2018 and wanted out of the NDA. The lawsuit was ultimately settled. Pecker said when he communicated the lawsuit with Cohen, he thought it was a bad idea. Still, Pecker told Cohen he did not want to continue with the lawsuit and was giving McDougal back her rights.
Pecker also told Cohen he was planning to sell back the rights because McDougal was upset.
Also, while on the stand, Pecker said he watched the Anderson Cooper and Stormy Daniels interview. Afterward, Trump called and asked if he saw the interview.
“We have an agreement with Stormy that she cannot mention my name or do anything like this,” Pecker claimed Trump said. “Anytime she breaches the agreement it’s a $1 million penalty. Based on that interview, she owes $24 million.”
NY v. Trump: Tabloid publisher testifies he bought stories on Tiger Woods, ex-Obama chief of staff
David Pecker testified Thursday that he purchased stories about professional golfer Tiger Woods, former Obama chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, among others during questioning by defense attorneys for former President Trump.
Pecker is the first witness called to the stand by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office.
Pecker is the former CEO of American Media Inc., the parent company of publications such as the National Enquirer, who has known Trump stretching back to the 1980s. Prosecutors allege that Pecker worked closely with the Trump campaign to bury negative information about Trump ahead of the 2016 election. Trump is accused of falsifying records related to the alleged “catch and kill” scheme.
Pecker testified that he purchased negative stories about Trump before the 2016 election and did not publish them — known as a “catch and kill” scheme. The stories included allegations from adult film actress Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal about affairs with Trump.
With regard to negative stories coming out about Trump before the election, Pecker testified that Trump was concerned about what his family would say about it, specifically about how it would impact his wife Melania Trump and daughter Ivanka Trump.
Pecker also testified that Trump was concerned about what the impact would be on his campaign in 2016.
But under cross-examination by Trump defense attorney Emil Bove, Pecker testified he purchased stories about other high-profile individuals besides Trump.
Pecker testified he purchased a story about professional golfer Tiger Woods, and a story about Rahm Emanuel in 2009 after he left the Obama White House. Pecker said he purchased the story about an alleged affair Emanuel had so that it would not be published. Emanuel also later served as ambassador to Japan.
Pecker also testified that he worked with Trump attorney Michael Cohen in his capacity as the former president’s personal attorney — not as part of the 2016 campaign.
Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman contributed to this update.
Thursday Recap: Supreme Court hears hours-long debate over Trump’s immunity claim
While Donald Trump was on trial in Manhattan, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on the former president’s claims of presidential immunity.
In nearly three hours of debate on Thursday, the high court wrestled with this question: “Whether and if so to what extent does a former president enjoy presidential immunity from criminal prosecution for conduct alleged to involve official acts during his tenure in office?”
Special Counsel attorney Michael Dreeben argued that U.S. presidents cannot enjoy blanket immunity from criminal prosecution Thursday. Trump attorney John Sauer contended that prosecuting a president for official acts while in office is “incompatible” with the U.S. Constitution.
Over the course of questioning, the justices seemed generally split along ideological lines.
“If the potential for criminal liability is taken off the table, wouldn’t there be a significant risk that future presidents would be emboldened to commit crimes with abandon while they’re in office?” Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson asked in an exchange with Trump’s lawyer, John Sauer.
“Once we say, ‘No criminal liability, Mr. President, you can do whatever you want,’ I’m worried that we would have a worse problem than the problem of the president feeling constrained to follow the law while he’s in office,” Jackson said.
Conversely, Justice Samuel Alito questioned whether limiting immunity for a former president would send the country into a destabilizing cycle.
“If an incumbent who loses a very close, hotly contested election knows that a real possible after leaving office is not that the president is going to be able to go off into a peaceful retirement, but that the president may be criminally prosecuted by a bitter political opponent, will that not lead us into a cycle that destabilizes the functioning of our country as a democracy? And we can look around the world and find countries where we have seen this process, where the loser gets thrown in jail,” Alito remarked.
“We’re writing a rule for the ages,” Justice Neil Gorsuch later stated.
A decision in the case is expected early this summer.
Fox News Digital’s Brianna Herlihy and Anders Hagstrom contributed to this update.
Who is David Pecker?
Tabloid publisher David Pecker is known as a longtime friend of former President Trump. He recently testified about the “catch-and-kill” scheme to hide allegations of a past affair that surfaced when then-candidate Trump was running for the White House in 2016.
Pecker was the CEO of American Media until summer 2020, during which time he was publisher of news outlets like the National Enquirer, Men’s Fitness, and Star.
According to Pecker, he told Trump and his personal lawyer at the time, Michael Cohen, that he would be their “eyes and ears” for any negative stories that could crop up during the campaign.
One of those stories is now part of the driving force behind Trump’s hush money trial. Pecker previously admitted to working with Trump’s team to purchase and suppress a story from former Playboy model Karen McDougal about claims of a 2006 affair with Trump. She was reportedly paid $150,000 to keep quiet.
Pecker was granted immunity in 2018 after working with prosecutors on their hush money case against Cohen.
NY v. Trump trial resumes for day 8, here’s what happened last time
Former President Donald Trump will return to New York Supreme Court on Friday morning for day eight of his criminal trial for allegedly falsifying business records.
Court will resume at 9:30 a.m. ET with former American Media CEO David Pecker taking the stand for cross-examination by defense attorneys. Trump is expected to attend today and every day of the trial.
On Thursday, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office wrapped up their direct examination of Pecker. The former tabloid publisher explained in great detail the “catch and kill” scheme regarding former Playboy model Karen McDougal’s story about an alleged affair with Trump.
Pecker coordinated with former Trump attorney Michael Cohen and purchased the exclusive rights to McDougal’s story, paying her $150,000 with the intention of never publishing it. He testified that he believed McDougal’s story to be true and it would have been very embarrassing for Trump and his 2016 presidential campaign if it became public.
Pecker also described learning about former pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels’ allegations of an affair with Trump, and testified that Cohen urged Pecker to buy Daniels’ story as well. However, Pecker said he refused to buy the story, instead telling Cohen that Trump should buy it himself.
Additionally, Pecker testified about various calls and meetings with Trump, including a visit to the White House in July 2017. He recalls Trump always asking about Karen.
